Fluorescent lighting is commonly used in offices and commercial venues. Fluorescent lighting operates according to the principle of ionizing a gas contained within a sealed tube. The electrically excited gas produces light emission as it returns to its normal energy level. The light spectrum depends upon the type of gas within the tube, but conventional fluorescent lighting emits light in the ultraviolet spectrum which is converted to visible light as it encounters the coating within the tube and causes the coating to fluoresce. Such fluorescent lighting also requires a relatively high voltage to produce the required ionization of the gas. This voltage may be provided by a starter which provides an inductive kick when current is shut off or reversed, the ballast serving to limit current in the arc between the filaments, or by high voltage windings loosely wound on the ballast itself in rapid start fluorescent lights.
Fluorescent lighting systems, while being more efficient than incandescent lighting, still consume considerably more energy than LED lights. Further, it has become common in office buildings and security installations to have the lighting system operating twenty-four hours a day which results in even more energy usage. It has been proposed for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,583,550 and 6,860,628 to provide LEDs within the fluorescent tube to create a combination fluorescent/LED light source. However, these devices do not exploit many additional advantages of combining LED light sources with conventional fluorescent light fixtures. LEDs provide many advantages in lighting, where they may be employed. LEDs are relatively cool in operation, and do not produce any significant amount of heat as a byproduct of their operation. Moreover, they are quite efficient in comparison to other types of lighting principles. LEDs are available in a number of different colors, and the lighting intensity may be varied by means of a simple variable resistor or rheostat, unlike fluorescent lighting.